The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) has reiterated its demand for a sustainable salary increase for workers, insisting that another wage award would not adequately address the decline in workers’ purchasing power.

The Congress said the Federal Government failed to fully implement the 2023 wage award agreement, leaving workers with an average of only three months’ payment out of the 10 months agreed upon.

In a communiqué issued after its emergency National Administrative Council (NAC) meeting on Wednesday, and signed by its Secretary-General, Comrade Nuhu Toro, the TUC said a salary increase would provide a more sustainable intervention to improve workers’ living standards.

The council said the wage award agreement, reached on October 2, 2023, was designed to run until the new minimum wage was signed into law on July 29, 2024.

It, however, lamented that workers received an average of only three months’ payment out of the 10 months agreed upon.

The TUC maintained that “the minimum wage is a statutory floor and not a ceiling on workers’ earnings,” arguing that government should consider a salary increase rather than another temporary wage intervention.

It said, “A sustainable salary increase offers a more meaningful intervention to improve workers’ purchasing power and living standards.”

The NAC also acknowledged the positions of its public-sector affiliates, including the Senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations and Government-Owned Companies (SSASCGOC), the National Union of Allied Health Professionals (NUAHP) and the Senior Staff Association of Universities, Teaching Hospitals, Research Institutes and Associated Institutions (SSAUTHRAI).

It said their positions were consistent with its earlier stance, stressing that “workers’ welfare cannot be advanced by disregarding the collective bargaining rights of affected unions or undermining their legitimate representation in matters concerning their conditions of service.”

The council further reaffirmed the TUC’s mandate as a recognised trade union centre to represent and negotiate for its members, citing International Labour Organisation Conventions 87 and 98, which guarantee freedom of association and collective bargaining.

It said it would pursue “constructive and result-oriented engagement” with the Federal Government to implement resolutions reached at its October 8, 2026 meeting in Abuja and address issues confronting federal and state government employees.

The NAC also urged its leaders to focus on securing a salary increase through engagement with relevant stakeholders rather than engaging in public exchanges over the matter.

It reaffirmed its commitment to collective decision-making and accountability, noting that it remained answerable to the National Executive Council, the Congress’s highest decision-making organ between delegates’ conferences.

The NAC declared that “workers’ welfare is non-negotiable,” while urging the Congress to remain focused on delivering tangible benefits to its members. (The Nation)